BIBI - CHAPTER 16

 

It was a rainy Monday morning, and Lara was frustrated by all the traffic. That was one thing she missed about London. Fast and reliable transportation that got you where you were going without hassles. She was cranky by the time she arrived at the office that morning. It didn’t also help that she didn’t have a good night’s sleep. She placed her bag under her desk and sighed. Kofo, her admin assistant, walked up to her. “Good morning, madam. Your first meeting with the people from Duchess Group is in forty minutes.”

Lara squinted and then nodded. She hadn’t yet turned on her computer. “Thanks, Kofo. Yes, I know.”

“Can I get you anything?”

“Yes, please. My regular morning fix.” Lara smiled.

“Okay, I’ll be right back,” Kofo replied.

She liked her new assistant a lot. In the short time since she had known her, Kofo had proven to be reliable. She honestly didn’t know what she would do without her these days.

After getting her morning fix, a cup of coffee, and egg sandwiches, Lara went through her presentation for one last time.

Hours later, she remembered that she needed to print some documents and walked to the printing room. She turned to look outside the window. There was a new restaurant across the road; she watched as people went in and out of it. Her stomach growled, and she remembered she hadn’t eaten lunch. She heard the printer stop sounding and figured her documents had finished printing. She picked up the papers and headed for her desk when she felt herself bump into someone.

The papers fell on the floor. “I’m so sorry; I wasn’t looking….” Her voice trailed off.

“No worries.” The young man said to her as he picked up the documents on the floor. “Here you go.”

“Thank you so much.” She said to him. He smiled at her and walked away.

Her phone vibrated on her desk minutes later. When she picked it up, she saw a text message from Stella Maris.

“Hi babe, thanks for coming the other day. I feel a lot better now.”

“Oh, don’t mention. It was nothing. Glad to hear you are doing well. I was quite concerned that day.” She texted Stella Maris back.

After texting back and forth with Stella Maris, she proceeded to reply to an email from a Senior Director in the company.

“Oh, Lara. It would be best if you had a break.” She muttered under her breath. It was half past two in the afternoon. She wasn’t sure if the cafeteria would have any food left. She would go to the restaurant across the street if that were the case.

She was about to grab her purse when she heard Foluso’s voice. “Madam, the madam.”

She smiled. “Mr. Lagoke, what brings you here?”

“I was in the neighborhood and thought to check on you. I don’t see you at your seat every time I walk by.”

“Right. I’ve been working on the tenth floor lately. We just wrapped up work on the advert for Suave.”

“Oh, the latest made-in-Nigeria car?”

“Yep,” Lara answered.

“By the way, that was one great presentation you gave this morning.”

“Thanks, Foluso.”

Since they had attended Asa’s concert, they had become more cordial with each other. He was her go-to person whenever she needed to rant about work or seek his opinion.

“How is your brother doing?”

“He’s doing okay. Much better than before. The therapy sessions have been helpful, and it seems he’s bounced back from the accident. I hear he’s busy with work these days. The company he works for allows him to work remotely. They just opened up a new office in the US, and he’s been busy running things.”

“Wow! That’s fantastic.”

“Yep, it is. Bade loves work, so you can imagine what the accident did to him with his inability to work.”

“Absolutely. Men are happiest when we work and provide for our families.”

“Exactly,” Lara responded.

“I am hungry,” Lara exclaimed.

“I have some time to spare. I can go to the cafeteria with you if you don’t mind.”

“Okay,” Lara said while picking up her bag on her desk.

Thankfully, the cafeteria still had food. “Good afternoon, aunty Yemi. What are you serving today?”

“Ms. Fernandez, good afternoon. I haven’t seen your face around here in a bit o.”

“I know. I’ve been super busy lately.”

“Eyha! But it would help if you still ate o. Today’s main dish is yam porridge with Croacker fish and dodo gizzard.”

Lara took at the food arrangements. "I’ll have that. Please put some stew on top o."

Foluso chuckled beside her.

“Sorry, I forgot to ask if you’d like to grab some food too,” Lara stated.

“Nah! I’m good. I’ve had lunch.”

Foluso watched her eat while they talked about random things.

“Oh, I didn’t know you were this funny,” Lara stated, wiping the sides of her mouth with a napkin.

“So, are you coming to Sunset Café with me tomorrow? I heard Ayo will be performing there.”

“Ayo? Like Ayo, the actor who sings?”

“Yep,” Foluso replied.

“Oh, my goodness! Yes, I’ll come with you. I’ve heard him sing before. I think he’s a bundle of talents, but he is so underrated.”

“I know. People don’t seem to vibe with the upcoming artists if it ain’t Davido, Burna Boy, or Wiz kid.”

****

“Lara Fernandez!” Someone called out to her shortly after she got out of the elevators at Broadstone Communications. It was time to head home. She spun around when she heard her name.

She squinted when she saw a lady waving at her. Her eyes became wide when she recognized the lady.

“Ronke! Aderonke Betiku!” Lara shouted and ran towards the lady who was waving frantically at her.

“Ronke!” Lara said again and hugged her. “I cannot believe this.”

“What are you doing here? Last I heard, you were in Sweden.”

“Yes, I was. I got married and moved there.” Ronke replied.

“Yes, I heard. What are you doing here?” Lara asked again.

“My husband is upstairs in a meeting and wanted me to pick him up since his driver had an emergency. He’s not very familiar with Lagos. We moved back to the country not too long ago.”

“Ah, I see.”

“What are you doing here yourself? Are you on vacation? “

“No, o. Lara answered. I just moved back to the country just like you.”

“Wow! Why? I thought you loved living in the UK.”

“Yes, I loved living in the UK until I got fed up. You know it gets lonely after a while, especially when you are single.”

“I understand. I’ve been there.” Ronke smiled with understanding.

“Boo, we have a lot to catch up on. Why don’t you punch your phone number here? I’ll call you, and we can hang out soon.”

“Sounds good,” Lara said, entering her phone number on Ronke’s iPhone.

“Alright, chica, I gotta go now,” Lara said. She hugged Ronke and dashed out of the building to look for her car.

The next day, she and Foluso watched Ayo perform at the Sunset café after work. They also savored a delicious meal of asun, peppered snails, and small chops.

“I had a great time. Thanks, Foluso.”

“Well, you are welcome, mademoiselle. I’m glad you had a great time .”

When Foluso texted her later that night, she felt warm and fuzzy inside, like this could be the start of something beautiful.

“Lara, with the romantic nature, slow your roll.” She admonished herself when thoughts of Jimmy suddenly bubbled up to the surface. She wasn’t about to get involved with a coworker of all people!

“Good night, Sweets.” Foluso’s text message popped up on her phone much later.

She shook her head and placed her phone on the nightstand.

The next day when Foluso stopped by at her desk and made small talk with her like he usually did, it occurred to her that she didn’t know if he was single or married. She looked at his hands for signs of a ring but saw none. He looked like he was in his early forties. His head was always clean-shaven. She didn’t know if he was bald or if that was his style. Though he wouldn’t compete for Mr. Universe, he was good-looking. He was a power dresser with an aura around him that indicated he was comfortable in his skin.

When they hung out at the new restaurant across the street later that week, she decided to ask him the question that had been on her mind all week.

“So, are you single, married, or divorced?” Lara asked.

Foluso placed the glass in his hand on the table after sipping from it. “I’m married, but we are not on good terms.”

Lara’s heart skipped a beat at his admission.

“What does that mean? Are you separated?”

“Let’s say we are on a break from each other. It sounds complicated, I know.”

“Do you have kids?”

“Yeah,” he answered. “I have three kids.”

“Nice,” Lara said, drinking all the juice in her glass cup.

“Does this change things between us?” Foluso finally said after what seemed like minutes of silence.

“Why should it?” Lara shrugged. “I enjoy your company, and I guess the feeling is mutual too?” She looked at him pointedly.

“Yep,” Foluso answered. They ate the rest of their food in silence.

When they returned to the office, Lara reflected on their conversation as she went through the PowerPoint document that her director had just emailed.

“Men! “She muttered and shook her head. Foluso had shown interest in her knowing that he was married! To think that she had started to like him!! What if she didn’t ask him about his marital status? She chided herself for thinking that someone like Foluso would still be single.

****

The week went by fast. Lara woke up on Saturday, muttering a prayer of thanks to God. Her mind went over some of the things she needed to do that day before heading to the party, including doing her laundry, cleaning her bathroom, and organizing her room. It was not that the house help couldn’t help her with these things. She preferred to do them on her own. Living in the UK meant being independent. It meant cooking her meals, cleaning up after herself, etc. These days, she felt like a queen, with people wanting to do even the tiniest things for her. Her father had gotten her a driver to drive her everywhere. “You are not used to this crazy Lagos driving, and with your brother’s accident, it would put my mind at rest knowing that you are in safe hands. Mr. Peters is an experienced driver who used to work for me a long time ago. He will drive you around from now on.” After that conversation, she’d agreed to have Mr. Peters chauffeur her.

Lara was home alone with their house help. Her father had traveled to the US to spend time with Bade and their mum. She had been invited to a wedding by one of her friends, Wonuola. For the first time in a while, she bought an Aso Ebi that had been sewn stylishly by her friend’s fashion designer, Awele.

Later that day, Mr. Peters drove her to Akintola Towers in Eko Atlantic City for the Belgore wedding. “Lara, if there’s a wedding you should be at, it’s this one. Ahh, please, you can’t miss it for anything in the world.” Wonuola had told her.

“Wow!” She exclaimed when she saw Akintola Towers. It was a magnificent building that stood before her when Mr. Peters drove into the premises. “ Lagosians no dey carry last sha!” She thought. People dressed regally and gorgeously. She saw people strike different poses as they took pictures. Some of the younger women left little to the imagination in their attires.

She opened her purse and pulled some money out. She gave them to Mr. Peters. “Please find something to eat.”

Thank you, Sisi Lara. Mr. Peters said, smiling. She had told him to call her Lara several times, but he preferred adding the title “Sisi” to it. Maybe it was his way of showing her respect. The wedding premises made her feel like she was in England. Everything around her spelled class. She called Wonuola, who was excited to see her. “Come, come sit with my family.”

 She saw old faces she hadn’t seen in a while all around.

“Lara, we didn’t know you were back in the country. How long have you been around? How are your parents?” The questions poured in one after the other.

She looked around and saw a lot of fine men around. Ah!! I have been dulling myself in London. She thought before sadness crept into her heart. Men were disappointing creatures. Look how Jimmy had turned out. Even Foluso, whom she’d begun to warm up to, was not being truthful about his marital status.

It was cocktail hour, and Lara walked around looking for Wonuola. She finally spotted her.

“Wonuola,” Lara called out.

“Lara Fernandez, you look so gorgeous.”

“Thank you,” Lara said, grinning.

“You look great yourself, Wonuola”  Wonuola had a figure that reminded her of the Ghanaian actor Joselyn Dumas.

“Thank you, dear. Eat and mingle. I will be right back.” Wonuola said.

“Sure.” Lara smiled at her and watched her walk away gracefully. Wonuola’s family also came from old money and was well-connected with the high and mighty in Nigeria.

Lara helped herself to a bowl of finger foods and a glass of champagne.

“Lara Fernandez!!” Someone yelled her name, and she spun around so quickly. She squinted when she saw the two ladies. They were the Olujobi twin sisters from high school.

They exchanged pleasantries and made friendly banter. Several people introduced themselves to her. Some of the men gave her their business cards. People headed for the wedding reception hall when the cocktail hour was over.

The hall was beautiful. Everything looked so fancy. She wondered how much the groom and bride’s families had invested into the wedding. It would be the talk of the town for a long time.

Wonuola joined her and introduced Lara to her cousins. She also reunited with Wonuola’s siblings, whom she had not seen in a long time. The servers came around and took their food orders.

There were several celebrities at the wedding. Lara could spot the actor, Zainab, and her dearest friend, Yolanda. She also spotted several senators and governors. 

Banky W was currently performing his song ‘Long time,’ and several people stood to dance. Her phone vibrated in her hands. Her mum was calling. Because it was noisy in the hall, she walked out and headed for a quieter place.

She was walking back into the reception hall when she heard a male voice call her name.

“Hi, Lara. Fancy seeing you here.” It was Kevin, and he was smiling at her. Lara raised her brows.

“Hi, Kevin. How’s Stella Maris? Did she come with you?”

“Nope. She said she had to be somewhere else today.”

“Yeah, she mentioned,” Lara stated. “I thought she changed her mind and decided to come with you.”

“Nah. My friends are inside there.” He pointed to the reception hall. “I just walked in, saw you, and thought to say hi. You look gorgeous, by the way.”

“Oh, thanks,” Lara answered. He looked good too. Maybe dashing was the word, but she wouldn’t tell him that.

Kevin gave her a once over before catching himself. It was rude to stare. “Errm... Alright. Let me go and join my friends.”

“Certainly.” Lara smiled and walked away. Kevin had been a jerk recently, and while she had come to love Stella Maris like a sister, she thought Kevin was an arrogant guy and couldn’t stand men like him. His compliments had caught her off guard. She didn’t know that he had it in him to be well-mannered.

****

When Pere turned on his laptop on Saturday morning, he saw a meeting invite from Sapphire Investments and Properties for a discussion on Monday at 10 am.

“Great! “He muttered. He hoped that they would be partnering with PAGS. He looked forward to doing business with them. Sapphire Investments had a stellar reputation and partnering with them would do wonders for their real estate company.

He heard a knock on his bedroom door and figured it would be Agnes.“Come in.”

“Oga, good morning. I made yam and fish stew for you. It’s in the warmer on the dining table. I dey go market. Food stuff don almost finish in the house.”

Pere tore his gaze away from his laptop to focus on her. “Good morning, Agnes. I’m barely home, but I appreciate all you do around here.”

Agnes nodded. “Ah oga, no problem at all.”

“How much do you need to replenish the food items?”

“Thirty thousand, oga, but I can manage twenty thousand.”

Pere looked in his wallet. He wasn’t sure he had that much. He counted the one thousand Naira bills, and surprisingly, he counted thirty notes and more.

“Here you go. Thirty thousand Naira.”

“Thank you. Let me go come.”

“No wahala.” Pere responded.

He truly appreciated her staying back to work for him after Adesua left.

His thoughts drifted to Nneoma. They had long conversations over the phone these days. It was funny, but he had begun to look forward to the phone conversations with her. He enjoyed how she giggled, analyzed things, and spoke passionately about what she cared about. He couldn’t deny that she was a breath of fresh air. Now and then, he was reminded of the fact that he was still married. While he wasn’t a staunch churchgoer these days, he knew the word of God and what it said about issues like adultery, fornication, and the like. He also knew that infidelity was grounds for divorce. Adesua had betrayed him and what they shared in the worst way possible. He no longer wore his wedding ring. Adesua’s friends and family hadn’t given him any information about her whereabouts. Every day, his thoughts strayed to his son, Tonye. Tears clouded his vision when he thought about his son. He wanted to hold him, plant kisses on his face and forehead, throw him up in the air, and play with him, but he was denied that because Adesua had chosen to be selfish. He loathed her so much now!

He was going to see a lawyer soon and get the marriage dissolved. Abandonment was also legal ground for a divorce.

He joined his friends at Ikoyi club later that afternoon.

“My man!” Siji rose to greet him when he arrived. They exchanged firm handshakes, and Siji patted him on his back.

“How was Helsinki? I thought you weren’t planning on coming back to Naija anymore.” Pere stated.

“How?” Siji roared, laughing. “You know I love living in this country.”

“Really?” George exclaimed. “In this japa age?”

Siji shrugged. “People have been emigrating since. Nothing new about it.”

“You seem to have forgotten that Siji has lived in many parts of the world,” Akin added.

“Pardon my temporary amnesia.” Pere lifted his hands in mock surrender.

“Yeah, there’s something different about being in Nigeria, you know,” Siji stated.

“I feel you, bro,” Pere responded.

Siji came from a well-to-do family. The Beckleys were a prominent family in Lagos. Siji’s father was an ambassador back in the day. His uncles and aunts all had thriving businesses and careers. He had heard some of them had private jets. They could afford many fine things in life.

Siji was married to a Finnish lady who lived in Nigeria for a while. She and Siji had decided they wanted their children to go to school in Finland, and they had all moved back. Siji spent most of his time shuttling between Finland and Nigeria.

“So, was your trip?” George asked, using his fork to pick a piece of the smoked goat meat on his plate.

“It was good. Helsinki is one of my favorite places in this world, you know. It’s beautiful and great for raising a family. I don’t worry about my children mixing up with bad eggs in school or other hassles.

Pere nodded. “Nice. I would love to visit there someday.” They talked about business and the upcoming meeting with Sapphire Investments.

“It’s a beautiful day for swimming,” Akin announced.

“Yeah!” Siji answered. They went swimming and played different sports.

Pere was tired at the end of the day. He hadn’t played lawn tennis in a while.

****

Later that night, when he drove into Jabari’s Bar, he saw Nneoma hunched over, typing on her phone. He spent much time with her lately and even introduced her to some of his friends. He had spoken to his lawyer and was ready to dissolve his marriage to Adesua.

“Hi, beautiful.” He said to her.

“Hey.” Her eyes lit up when she saw him. “How are you?”

“Tired. I had a long day, but I needed to be here when I saw your text message.”

“Thanks for coming.” Nneoma smiled shyly. “Do you care for anything to drink?”

“Nope. I want to be clear-eyed tonight.” Pere snickered.

Nneoma stared at him, and they both burst into laughter.

“For a man, you are quite light-feathered. Two glasses of alcohol, and you are out.”

Pere chuckled. “I know.”

His eyes roved over face. What a beautiful woman Nneoma was!

“Why do you look so serious, though? What’s going on?” Pere stated.

Nneoma managed a stiff smile. Pere gazed at her. Something about her countenance was off.

“We can’t deny that things have gotten serious between us.” Nneoma cleared her throat. “I thought I should let you know about my past before you begin to hear things about me.”

“Okay…” Pere said, perplexed.

“Mum passed when I was thirteen, and my father became lost after her death. My mother was very loving. She doted on us and cared for my father devotedly.”

“People called them two peas in a pod. Her death devasted him, and suddenly, nothing mattered anymore. I believe he went through a phase of depression. We barely saw him. We had a houseboy who came to live with us. At some point, my older brothers went to boarding school. My younger brother, Izuchukwu, and I remained in the house with my father.” Nneoma stopped to sip from her glass of wine, and Pere looked at her, willing her to continue.

“Our house boy, Odion, would call me into his room to help him out, and he would touch me inappropriately. It felt wrong initially, but I began to enjoy and look forward to his touches. He was about eighteen at the time. Then one day, we had sex, and he told me to keep quiet about it. I bled, and he washed my soiled clothes. My father was barely home, and Izuchukwu was too young to know what was happening. Odion went to the village for Christmas one day and never returned.

My father got a maid after Odion left, and she would watch pornography when my father was not around. Eventually, she started asking me to come and watch it with her. Then she’d ask us to demonstrate the things we had seen.”

Nneoma lifted her head and saw the look on Pere’s face. It was a mixture of shock and disgust.

“Why didn’t you mention this to your father or anyone else?” Pere asked in a tone that sounded hushed.

“Because I was scared. I thought something terrible would happen to me. That’s what I had been told.”

Pere shook his head, and his thoughts strayed to Tonye.

“I had my first abortion when I was sixteen, and by the time I got to the University, I had several.”

Bile rose in Pere’s throat. He took a swig of water, contemplating whether to leave or wait to hear if she had anything more to say. He knew she wasn’t a saint, but he had not been prepared for what she’d just told him.

“My dad sent me to America in my second year at the University. He was hearing things about me and said he’d send me abroad for a few years so I could have a clean slate. I lived a wanton life in the US, but I still managed to ace my courses. I slept with a lot of men.”

She reached for a stick of cigarette and lighted it.

“I thought you had stopped smoking,” Pere stated.

“Old habits die hard!” Nneoma retorted. “Pere, I’m a bad girl with a terrible history! I’m not good enough for you.”

With that, she picked up her purse and walked away.

Pere’s temple throbbed. “What had he gotten himself into?”

That night, he wept when he got home. Was he doomed to be alone forever? He was unlucky where women and relationships were concerned. Look how Adesua had turned out! His heart broke all over just thinking about Nneoma and her past.

On Monday morning, Nneoma wasn’t in the conference room when he met with her father and other leaders in Sapphire Investments. He wasn’t ready to speak to her after everything she told him on Saturday night.

He was elated when Nneoma’s father and the team at Sapphire Investments announced that they’d like to enter a partnership with PAGS Properties. They went over the terms and conditions of the collaboration with him, and he told them to give him some time to run it by the other partners at PAGS. They accepted, and he met with Akin, George, and Siji. They called Bade and got his advice before signing the contract with Saphire Investments. Everyone thought that it was going to be a profitable business venture indeed.

When he returned days later to hand over the signed documents, Nneoma was nowhere in sight. He thought about calling her, but he wasn’t over what she had shared with him on Saturday. He knew she was no saint, but he was having trouble blotting out the image of her with all the men. Just thinking about it made him sick.